As The Smoke Clears
by liddylouwho
Summary: This is how I wanted the series to end. Prim lives and Coin is not a new evil. Katniss and Peeta still have struggles, but overall, this is a bright, shiny story. Oh, it's rated M for a reason. I OWN NO CHARACTERS! All credit goes to Ms. Collins! :)
1. Chapter 1

CH. 1

She looks up to him, pain obvious in her eyes. Was this the end finally? She was so cold, but she could still feel the warmth of her own blood pouring from her abdomen. "Katniss…please…stay with me…" She felt her eyes get heavy and everything went black.

"When is she supposed to wake up, Doctor?" "She should have by now; it's hard to say why she hasn't yet. Sometimes people just cannot handle the amount of trauma she has." She could vaguely make out the conversation in the room. The pain was minimal thanks to the morphling, but it made her feel sluggish and she didn't like that at all. Her eyes fluttered open and there he was; with his blonde hair and naturally curled eyelashes. His eyes lock on hers and he runs over to her. "Oh Katniss, you're awake! How do you feel? Do you hurt?" The doctor walks over and makes an adjustment to the morphling. Good, she hates how dizzy it's making her. "Where am I? What happened?" She tries to sit up at the same time as talking and the pain is so overwhelming everything goes black.

-Peeta POV—

There was chaos, complete and utter chaos, in his mind, and happening all around him. His hijacked mind is telling him this is all her fault. The bombs going off, all the children dying or already dead were all her fault. But a bigger part of him knew better. The bigger part knew she was hurt and probably dying too, and he needed to find her fast. In a panic he starts running through the crowds, his eyes scanning through the destruction for her. There was so much blood and he knows he will never forget the smell of burning flesh. After several moments of panic he sees her, lying alone and pale as a ghost. "Katniss! Katniss! Are you okay?! Talk to me! Please!" Her eyes snap open in panic and she tries to say something but there was so much blood nothing comes out but a garble.

He knows he needs help but there is so much going on he doesn't know where to look. His mother was not a healer like hers so he had no idea what to do for the bleeding. He also sees that she is badly burned on her legs and even though he has dealt with his fair share of burns from working in the bakery, he has no idea how to help these. Her skin is scorched and slightly falling off. It has the resemblance of tissue paper, the kind they use at the bakery to wrap cookies and small pastries. He knows he is losing her and is desperate for help when out of nowhere comes Gale. He sees Gale mouth words into something on his wrist, maybe a communication device of some sort and the hovercraft is there so take them away. The last thing he remembers is someone coming at him with a needle and the lingering thoughts of the baby, was the baby okay?


	2. Chapter 2

-Katniss POV—

It hurts, so much. She knew she needed to get up though, she could not stand being in this hospital bed one more minute. Prim comes over and helps her slowly but surely stand up and hands her the walker. Ugh, the walker. She hates it, it makes her feel like a little old lady, but in reality she really cannot get far without it. "Where do you want to go today?" asks Prim. Beautiful Prim has grown into such an amazing young woman. _When did that happen?_ Katniss had been so wrapped up in helping Peeta recover from the hijacking and being the Mockingjay she didn't notice that Prim had been following right in the footsteps of their mother. She was a natural born healer though, it was obvious from the time she could walk and talk, so it was only expected. It came to be of great use once they got to District 13 and there wasn't much help in the hospital wing. "I want to go outside, I can't stand being in here any longer, I need to see the sky, and grass. I need to feel the breeze." "Do you think you can make it that far? It's a bit of a walk from here. How about we use the wheelchair to get outside and you can walk around once we get out there?" _Ugh, the wheelchair, the only thing that degrades me more than this stupid walker. _"Fine, if it gets me outside, I'll do it. But don't think I'm using that thing for long." "At the rate your healing is going," says Prim, "You won't even need the walker much longer!"

She didn't see much truth in that statement. Her injuries were extensive. When the bombs went off she was just a few feet from one. Her eardrums were instantly blown and she felt the worst pain of her life in her midsection. Her hands shot to her belly, which was just starting to show. The baby was not planned at all, but with Peeta being himself again they were able to enjoy that part of their marriage, and since they had their own quarters in 13, they had the privacy. When she looks at her hands they are covered in blood. She starts screaming, as best she can, but that makes it worse and soon she is choking on what she can only assume is her own blood. Her vision is so blurry, but she can still see his beautiful face trying to coax her back into consciousness. She can hear him yelling over everyone else, begging her to stay with him, to not die. She tries to apologize for killing their baby but she just chokes more and finally passes out.


	3. Chapter 3

CH. 3

When they finally tell her she lost the baby, it came as no surprise to her. She remembered bits and pieces of that day and that was one thing she couldn't forget. When she first found out she was pregnant, she was terrified. How could she be so selfish to bring a child into a world like this, ridden with war and death and the uncertainty of tomorrow? Peeta of course was ecstatic, he always wanted children and was so optimistic about the war ending soon, he was confident all would be okay before the baby was due. She left her fears to herself, Peeta was just so happy she couldn't bring it to herself to rain on his parade. But as her sickness hit, it was harder and harder to be happy about it. She was miserable and made it obvious. She had spent most of her morning in the bathroom one day and was just about to scream from feeling so miserable when she felt it; just the slightest little flutter. If she hadn't been sitting there praying she wouldn't heave again, she probably would have missed it. And suddenly, just like that, her perspective changed. She felt the life she was creating and all that sickness was worth it. Peeta was admittedly jealous when she told him what had happened, and he soon noticed she stopped complaining so much. She notice there was now a smile on her face more often than not.


	4. Chapter 4

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CH. 4

When she is outside she feels alive again. The day is beautiful, warm but not hot and sunny with a slight breeze. It has been two months since the final day of the war and peace has settled in. President Snow died before he could be tried and executed for crimes against humanity. President Coin is living up to everyone's hopes. No more hunger games. No more suffering. The cleanup after the bombings has begun and districts are slowly but surely picking up production again and people are starting much happier, healthier lives. She and Peeta have all their belongings packed up and are waiting for the final train to district 12. They are going home at last. Most everyone else has already headed home, but with her injuries, they had to stay a little longer. They sit on a bench and loosely hold hands, just sitting there enjoying one another's company and the warmth of the sun. They hadn't realized how much they missed the sun after living underground so long. "How are you feeling?" Peeta asks. She thinks it over, so many emotions at once. Happy, nervous, sad, hopeful. She smiles at him and says her biggest emotion, "Hopeful, things are changing and we can finally live a safe life. No more hunger." "No more hunger." He repeats. She can't help but smile, he is everything she's ever wanted, but there's something else missing. She knows what it is, but she is terrified to bring it up any time soon.

The train finally pulls up and out comes Effie, with her usual obnoxious pink hair and oddly pale skin. Seems she isn't going to give up the odd capital style, oh well, old habits die hard. "There's my favorite couple! Come! Come! We have a schedule to attend to! You two are big news today, finally heading to your home district, so many people very excited to see you!" I roll my eyes and think _yep, old habits really do die hard._ It doesn't take too long to get back to twelve. Thankfully the rail system was fixed soon after the final bombings so supplies could be shipped to various districts for the reconstruction business. The first person to meet us is Haymitch, who as it seems is sober for the time being. White liquor is very hard to come by these days and very expensive when found. "Sweetheart" he says as he embraces her for a hug, "Good to see you up and around again. And Peeta, looking as good as ever." She smiles and thinks she might like this version of Haymitch. "Hey Haymitch, how's twelve treating you?" Peeta asks while shaking his hand. "Not bad, quiet, and we are lacking in the meat department" he says as he winks at Katniss.

She has been yearning to hunt for weeks. With 13 being the new capital and so busy, there were no animals to hunt, and with her still recuperating, she wasn't as stealthy as she would like to be. "Well, that might have to change soon." Says Katniss with a grin on her face. She is growing tired quick, so they say hello to everyone else that has come to meet them at the station and head to their rebuilt home in the victor's village. Since they got married in 13, they never got the chance to live in their own real house, as there was no place like that there. Here though, this was home. When they got to the door, Peeta opened it and swiftly lifted her right off her feet and stepped over the threshold. "Whoa! What are you doing?!" "It's a tradition! When the couple steps foot for the first time in their home as husband and wife, the husband is supposed to carry the wife over the threshold; it's supposed to be good luck or something, I think." She giggles, never hearing of this tradition, but she lets him carry her anyways. _A little luck can't hurt, right? _


	5. Chapter 5

-Katniss POV—

It's been a week since we have been home and we have fallen into a routine. I love that we can finally sleep next to one another without pain and without fear of nightmares or flashbacks. Dr. Aurelius made a major breakthrough with us both and we have not had issues since weeks before we left 13. Peeta is using the rest of his winnings to rebuild the bakery, he says he doesn't feel complete unless he has something to do and since that is his passion, I quickly agreed. Plus we still have all of my winnings to live off of.

I have been feeling much better and decide today is the day I go hunting again. I find my usual outfit; it feels odd against this new skin, but everything does, just another effect of being burned so badly. I lace up my boots and grab my bow. It feels so good in my hands, natural, like it is just an extension of my own arms. Out of habit I go to the meadow and head for the break in the fence. It is not electrified and never will be again. The reason it is up now is to keep out unwanted predators, the very ones I want to kill.

I creep into the woods, finding I am as quiet as I used to be. _Thank the heavens, if there is one thing Snow could not take from me is my ability to hunt._ As I'm walking, I find I miss Gale. Was it really just a year ago we were out here, hunting and talking of what life would be like without the games? So much has changed since then. I do miss Gale now, but I miss the old Gale more than anything; ever since he was appointed a high ranking office in the new military and has since all but forgotten about me. _Everything happens for a reason, right? _

It's in my thinking I spot it coming, running more like; a wild dog, coming straight at me. I pull back on the bow and take aim. The arrow hits it right in the left eye. _I still have it!_ Luckily, the dog isn't too big and I am able to load it into my game bag and head back to town. The Hob was rebuilt, this time bigger and much cleaner, also completely legal. With no fear of being punished for trading, almost everyone in town walks around at least once a day to see what there is. I head over to Greasy Sae's table and lug the dead animal up and out of my bag. "Hiya girl, we missed you around here, meat isn't the same when it's imported." I smile back and say "I'm glad I'm here, I missed home too." We make a trade and I smile at the money she's handed me. It's not much, but I want to add it to my savings. Maybe this can be my way to earn a living like Peeta's will be the bakery?

I begin to head home, but on my way I decide to take a detour and see how the bakery is coming along. The last I heard all they needed to do was hang the sign up and business would be open. Peeta decided to keep the family name going and call it "Mellarks" in memoriam of his father. As I'm walking I really take a look around. The district has improved drastically from even before the rebellion. People are genuinely happy; businesses are prospering. I see the sign has been hung and it looks fantastic. A beautifully decorated cupcake with Mellarks splayed across it in bright letters. I open the door and walk in and there he is. Curly blonde hair, beautiful blue eyes; I never thought I would love him like this. I never imagined I could love anyone to this level, but with him, nothing else matters and I feel almost complete. I say almost because every since things have settled down I can't stop thinking about having children. I never wanted them before, during the dark days there was a saying "For every crying newborn, you could hear the mother crying louder." The thought of having children in times like that was horrifying to me and I never wanted anything to do with it. But now, with things happy and peaceful, with no hunger or hurting, I wanted it; and I wanted it with Peeta.


End file.
